Elijah is a former refugee with extensive experience in human services, advocacy, people management and not-for-profit leadership. Elijah leads Act for Peace’s essential work in empowering people displaced by conflict and disasters across the globe and brings a deep understanding of the issues people experiencing displacement face. After losing his parents to conflict when he was a child, he spent many years in refugee camps in Uganda before coming to Australia in 2002 as a humanitarian unaccompanied minor.

In Australia, Elijah achieved university qualifications including a Master of Law, Master of Justice in Intelligence, a Bachelor of Human Services and is currently completing a Juris Doctor of Law at the Australian National University. He has also received numerous awards for advocacy and community services including an Order of Australia Medal and the Australian of Year QLD Hero Award (2019). Elijah has held various leadership positions throughout his career, including Acting CEO with Ethnic Communities Council of Queensland, Executive Director of the Refugee Communities Association of Australia and most recently, the Queensland State Manager of Migration Support Programs for Australian Red Cross.